


Fools in Love

by Alyss_inwonderland



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Banter, Boys Kissing, Bratty Hyunsung, Childhood Memories, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Falling In Love, Family Issues, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Getting Together, Getting to Know Each Other, Han Jisung | Han & Lee Felix are Best Friends, Han Jisung | Han is Whipped, Han Jisung | Han is a Sweetheart, Hwang Hyunjin & Kim Seungmin are Best Friends, Hwang Hyunjin Being an Asshole, Kissing, M/M, Making Out, School rivals, Science Projects
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-07
Updated: 2019-07-07
Packaged: 2020-06-23 22:08:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19710421
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alyss_inwonderland/pseuds/Alyss_inwonderland
Summary: “Oh my god, we’re such fools.”“Fools in love? Yeah, sounds about right.”Or, Hyunjin and Jisung have been school rivals since Kindergarten and hated each other until they were forced to participate in the National Science Competition together and suddenly things didn't go as planned.





	Fools in Love

“You must be joking.”

“I assure you, I am not.”

Jisung stares at their principal in disbelief, almost as if he waited long enough, things wouldn’t be as they are. But their principal continues to give them that unwavering stare, blank of any pitiful emotions.

“I am _not_ working with _him_.”

Jisung almost scoffs at the statement, turning to the boy next to him who looks equally as annoyed as Jisung was about the whole situation. They’re wearing the same standard uniform, but he makes it look like high class summer wear while Jisung looks like an uptight nerd.

 _Hwang Hyunjin_.

In all other universes, Jisung would fall to the boy’s feet because he was the epitome of beauty. Too bad that beauty didn’t come with a likable personality.

They met in kindergarten. Things could have gone differently, Jisung thinks, if Hyunjin didn’t decide to steal his animal crackers. Jisung could have forgiven him too, he really could have. But that day he was particularly hungry, and as payback, he stole Hyunjin’s crayons.

The feud started then.

They disliked each other to the point where they were always trying to one-up the other in everything. It didn’t help that both were good at academics and athletics, so neither department had a break when it came to the two of them.

It started out as little things at first. Whoever came first in a race, whoever had the better score on a test. Then it became whoever was the leader or who was nominated by the teacher the most times. When they both ran against each other for student leader, they tied so the school had no choice but to make them co-presidents.

So, when they heard about the National Science Competition, both wanted to win. But the competition was done in pairs, partnerships. And they had to be approved by the principal because each school could only send one representative team.

This brought them back to the current situation. “I meant it when I said I want you two to be on the same team for this competition.” Jihyo says, glancing down at the flyer. “After all, it would be best if our top students of their year were to put their brilliant minds together, no?”

“No.” Jisung and Hyunjin says flatly at the same time, glancing at each other in disgust. “Don’t copy me!”

Jihyo sighs, lacing her fingers together on the desk. “Since there’s clearly much needed teamwork here, I’m thinking of nominating another team.” They look at her in surprise, confused.

Jihyo smiles. “How about this? We will do a pre-competition before the actual thing. You two against another team. Whoever wins will go to the National Science Competition to represent our school. Sounds fair?”

“Why can’t it just be my team against his team?” Jisung points out. “Why do we have to be on one team?”

“Because I’m deciding the teams here, not you.” Jihyo shrugs. “If you don’t want to participate, you can drop out and the other team gets to go instead.”

“No!” Hyunjin rushes to say. He hesitates, chewing on his lips. With a defeated sigh, “I’ll do it.”

Jisung looks at him as if he’s crazy because they should put up a fight here. They shouldn’t be giving in, it’s a horrible idea! Does he not know how much the project would suffer because they’ve never worked together before and therefore have no idea how to?

Jihyo smiles. “Excellent. The presentations will be one month from now. The other team are rank 2nd and 3rd in your year. Now shoo, go brainstorm!”

* * *

“What were you thinking?” Jisung scowls as they were walking back to class from the principal’s office.

Hyunjin rolls his eyes. “Look, the sooner we get done with this project, the faster we don’t have to see each other outside of school. Do you want to go to the competition or lose to those fools?”

Jisung hates that there’s no comeback because Hyunjin was right in both things. He wants to go, because science is like, his thing and he’s always had a knack for it for some strange reason. He thinks it’s because his father works in a lab. The music side comes from his mother. And he doesn’t like the idea of losing to the other team either.

“Fine, what do you have in mind?” Jisung grunts.

“Let’s meet after school and see what we come up with.” Hyunjin suggests. “Though, I hardly doubt any of your ideas are going to be useful but feel free to speak when you can.”

Jisung glares, opening his mouth for a witty comeback when they arrive at their class and Hyunjin enters first. He clamps his mouth shut, already fearing for the worst in this so-called team project.

_Jisung hates Hwang Hyunjin._

* * *

They’re seated across from each other in the school’s library. There were some students hanging around, but the library was mostly empty after school.

It’s silent. Well, that was normal in the library. But it wasn’t normal for Hyunjin and Jisung because both always felt the need to speak their minds when they’re with each other. Mostly it’s insults.

“Well? Do you have anything at all?” Hyunjin arches an eyebrow, tapping his pencil on a blank sheet of paper.

“What about you? Do you have anything?” Jisung retorts, leaning in his chair with his arms crossed over his chest. “Surely Mr. Hotshot has something in his little pea-sized brain.”

Hyunjin scowls. “Can you not act like a five-year-old for once and focus? The project is riding on this!”

“I’ll stop acting like one when you stop treating me like one!” Jisung snaps back.

Hyunjin lets out a loud groan. “Why does it have to be you? God really hates me.”

“The feeling’s mutual.”

Hyunjin frowns. “You know what, I’ll do the work. You can just sit there and pretend you’re contributing.”

“What? No way!” Jisung protests. “I’m working on this thing too! If it’s just you, we’re sure to lose!”

“Are you calling me dumb?”

“I’m saying you’re incapable of winning, yes.”

“You- You know what, I’m done here.” Hyunjin stands up, grabbing his things. “Let’s just work on our own projects and see who has the better one for the team!” With another huff, he leaves.

* * *

“Can you believe him? He just left!” Jisung almost wants to scream into the pillow. He kinda did.

Felix looks up from where he’s sitting on the floor, clicking away at a video game. “Okay, sure, but why are you in my house complaining about it? I thought this was obvious since you two, uh, don’t like each other?”

“You’re supposed to be my friend here,” Jisung whines, thrashing his feet on the bed. “What kind of best friend doesn’t comfort his almost twin?”

“Almost is the key word there,” Felix snorts. “Look, just do what he says then. Make your own project and see who has the better one for the team. I thought you love science.”

Jisung frowns, sitting up with a pillow in his lap. “But that’s not teamwork, Lix. It’s individual work! We’re supposed to be working _together_ on this project, not alone.”

Felix pauses his game, twisting his body around to look at Jisung. “I thought you didn’t want to work with him. Cause he’s your enemy or whatnot?”

Jisung juts out his lip, sighing loudly. “I don’t want to work with him, but if it’s for the sake of the project then I’ll do it! My dad always told me science is better if you work with a team. His lab partners are literally our family friends!”

“Then go convince him,” Felix shrugs. “Who knows, maybe he’ll agree since you’re good at persuading people.”

“I don’t know his number,” Jisung groans, voice muffled by the pillow. “Besides, he’s going to block me anyway.”

“Ask Minho-hyung. They have class together, don’t they?” Felix reminds him. “Of course, I have class with him too, but we don’t talk much. He’s not that bad though. We probably could have been friends if I wasn’t already friends with you.”

Jisung throws a pillow at Felix’s face, hearing the other boy grunt in pain. “Traitor.” With a pause, he sighs. “Fine, I’ll ask tomorrow. But I guess I should at least come up with something.”

“Cool. Now please kindly leave so I can go back to my game.”

“Some friend you are.”

* * *

“You’re doing it by yourself?” Seungmin arches an eyebrow, staring at the assortment of stuff on the coffee table. He picks something up with curiosity. “Also, why my house?”

“Because I can’t do it at my house,” Hyunjin shrugs, fishing out a piece of paper with several designs on it. He grabs some parts and starts assembling it according to the designs. “And your mother loves me.”

“Oh yes, she adores you.” Seungmin rolls his eyes, remembering the batch of freshly baked brownies his mother had made when she heard Hyunjin was coming over. He figures he’ll tell Hyunjin later when the boy decides to take a break. “I thought this was supposed to be a team project?”

“It is.” Hyunjin confirms. “But we couldn’t work together so we’re doing our own projects and seeing who has the better one for the team.”

“Did Jisung agree to this or did you decide on your own again?” Seungmin asks, making Hyunjin pause.

“He probably would have,” Hyunjin replies after a moment, resuming his project. “Besides, we would have never been able to work together in the first place.”

Seungmin sighs. “You could at least try, Hyunjin. Honestly, isn’t this getting old? It’s been like, kindergarten. We all could have been friends, you know.”

Hyunjin snorts. “Me? Friends with him? _Please_. We can’t agree on anything.”

“Probably because you never had a decent conversation with each other,” Seungmin points out, folding his arms over his chest as he tuts. “Well, I guess we’ll see how this goes then.”

“It will go splendidly because my project will be better than this,” Hyunjin says confidently.

Seungmin merely hums. “How’s home by the way? You’ve been over a lot recently.”

Hyunjin freezes, hand stopped in motion from where he’s assembling a part. He clears his throat, setting down the piece. “It’s been…fine. Just, fine. Why? Do you not want me here?” His voice grows softer, quieter as if he’s waiting for the worst to come.

Seungmin hates the look that Hyunjin gives him, like he’s terrified Seungmin will never allow him to come back or something. He hates it even more because even after years of friendship, Hyunjin still lets these thoughts come to mind.

“No, no, that’s not it, Jin.” Seungmin grabs Hyunjin’s hand, squeezing tightly. “You’re welcome here any time. I’m just…worried, is all. Is everything okay?” He’s worried, especially when Hyunjin flinches and goes still again.

Hyunjin inhales a shaky breath, pulling his hand back to his side. “I’m fine, Min. Everything is fine. Can we just, not talk about it?” He mumbles, hands going back to his project like he needs to do something with them to calm his nerves.

Seungmin agrees quietly, watching his friend. He knows there’s more to the story, but Hyunjin never opens up. There’s only one time that Seungmin remembers when Hyunjin had come to his house one day in complete tears, and the Kim family hadn’t let him go home until his parents came for him the next day.

“Hey.” Seungmin says softly, making Hyunjin look up with tired eyes. “Do you want some brownies?”

“Yeah. Please.”

* * *

“You need Hyunjin’s number?” Minho stares at Jisung, dumbfounded by the request. “I thought you said you hated his guts?”

Jisung rubs his nape sheepishly. “Well, I kinda need it? To like, contact him?” Minho arches an eyebrow at this and Jisung rushes to explain. “For a project! I need it because we’re supposed to be doing a project together!”

“Oh,” Minho blinks. “Then why can’t you ask him yourself? You have class together, right?”

“But you have class with him too! And you’re friends with him,” Jisung says. “So why can’t you give me the number?” He places both his hands together, lips forming a pout. “Oh come on, hyung! Please please _please_?”

Minho flicks his forehead when he tries to come closer. “Okay first off, that doesn’t work on me. Also,” Minho grabs Jisung’s shoulders and turns him around, “he’s right there so ask him yourself.”

Jisung blinks. It was true, Hyunjin was walking down the hallway, clearly having spotted them because he quickly turns away when Jisung meets his eyes. “Hyunjin!”

Either the boy is deaf, or he was ignoring him because he suddenly makes a turn and goes the other way. Jisung scowls, running after him while Minho crackles in amusement.

“Hwang Hyunjin, we need to talk!” Jisung was small, but he likes to think of himself faster than Hyunjin. At least, that’s how he caught up so quickly and grabs the taller boy’s wrist.

Hyunjin sighs loudly, turning around, tugging his hand back. “What? Are you here to tell me you can’t come up with a project?”

Jisung frowns, cheeks puffing up in anger. “Excuse you, I have started on my project! What about you huh?”

Hyunjin smirks lazily. “My base is done.”

Jisung was thrown back. It’s only been a few days since they were assigned, and he was already building? Meanwhile, he remembers his project with only a few rough drafts finished… Jisung likes to think these things take time, okay?

“If we’re done here, I’d like to go work on it, thanks.” Hyunjin drawls, starting to turn around again.

“Give me your number!” The words are out of his mouth before Jisung realizes it. Hyunjin gives him a strange look and he doesn’t know why, but it makes him flush. “F-for the project, moron! We’re a team, remember?”

“You don’t need my number, we can just meet at school.” Hyunjin frowns, clearly not seeing the point of Jisung’s argument here.

“We can’t meet at school all the time! School is only eight hours for five days in a week, there’s plenty of time outside of it that we can use for the project,” Jisung protests. “Besides, the principal wants us to present something as a team. We have to communicate here.”

Hyunjin raises an eyebrow. “If I recall, it was you who was against us working together in the first place. I’m the one who agreed to this arrangement.”

“Okay fine, you’re right,” Jisung admits. “But my dad always said working as a team on a science project is better than working alone. I’m following his advice!”

“Why bother?” Hyunjin mumbles, turning away. “Dads don’t know anything about your life.”

“What?”

“Nothing.” Hyunjin fishes out his phone from his pocket and hands it to Jisung. “Here. Put your number in so I can leave.”

Jisung hands his phone over too, exchanging it with Hyunjin’s. “You have to put yours in too! How do I know if you will ever contact me if I just give you my number?”

Hyunjin snorts, inputting his number into Jisung’s phone. “You’re right. I guess you’re not as stupid as you look.”

“Apologize to all the squirrels in the world!” Jisung hisses, offended as he takes his phone back and gives Hyunjin his, watching the boy pocket it with a shrug. “That’s an insult to cute creatures!”

“Yes, yes. I’m very sorry,” Hyunjin says, sarcasm dripping like honey from his voice. “Since we’re done here, bye.” He turns on his heel and heads for the library.

Not even a moment later, Hyunjin stops when he hears quick footsteps behind him. He clicks his tongue. “Why are you following me?”

Jisung huffs, glad he stopped himself in time or else he would have bumped into Hyunjin’s back. “Don’t think so highly of yourself. We’re going to the same place! I’m working on my project too, okay?”

“Don’t disturb me.”

“Fine.”

* * *

Hyunjin stares as Jisung seats himself in front of him, digging into his bag and pulling out parts for his project, Hyunjin assumes. He rubs his temples, frustrated by the fact the smaller boy continues what he’s doing, paying no mind to Hyunjin at all. “What part of ‘don’t disturb me’ did you not understand?”

“This is the biggest table in the library,” Jisung states, gesturing to the wooden table. “There’s plenty of room for both of us. Besides, teamwork remember?”

“We’re literally working on two unrelated projects.” Hyunjin bluntly points out, eyeballing Jisung’s very rough designs. “Did you draw with your left hand or something?”

Jisung flips his designs over, a little red dusting his cheeks. “It’s fine as long as I can understand them, okay? Nobody ever said art was needed for science!”

“Looks like a giant watermelon,” Hyunjin comments.

“It’s an amazing watermelon then!”

Hyunjin just gives him a blank stare, until Jisung looks away and starts working on his project, mumbling a “how rude”.

They work in silence shortly after, mostly because neither really wanted to talk to the other and they were too focused on their own projects. The only sounds in the library were the other students and them tinkering away at their projects.

“Is that your project?”

Hyunjin tenses, moving his body a little to shield his project as if Jisung might destroy it. “Yeah. What about it? Gonna say it sucks?”

“No,” Jisung murmurs. “It’s uh, really cool. I like the idea.”

“Thanks?” Hyunjin cringes, god that sounded so awkward. He’s honestly surprised. He’s not used to Jisung complimenting him on anything. It’s only been insults between the two of them. “Yours is…uh…” Hyunjin blinks, staring at well, whatever Jisung’s project is. “I have no idea what it is.”

Jisung pouts, looking down at his project. “You don’t know what it is? You don’t understand my creative process!”

“Creative…process,” Hyunjin just nods because if he doesn’t shut his mouth, insults are going to come out and that’s rude considering how Jisung just complimented him. He’s not that ungrateful, he likes to think.

“Just wait, you’ll understand soon!” Jisung claims, going back to his project.

Hyunjin thinks he’s cute when he’s frustrated but doesn’t dare say it out loud. He erases the thought from his mind before it develops.

* * *

They spend the next two weeks like this. Somehow, they always end up meeting at the library after school. Somehow, they end up at the same table and places both their projects down. Somehow, they work without killing each other.

The librarian thinks it’s a miracle. Their friends didn’t believe them at first, until they came to see for themselves the other day. Truth to say, they were shocked by what they saw. Afterwards, since they weren’t science nerds, Seungmin and Felix talked on the couches while making sure their best friends don’t rip each other apart.

Strangely, they don’t.

One day, they stay a little later than intended. They’re walking out the doors of the school when Jisung sees Hyunjin turn the opposite direction of his house.

“Isn’t your house that way?” Jisung points, confused as to why the taller male wasn’t heading home when it was already getting late. Years of knowing each other made it easy to know the other’s neighborhood.

Hyunjin stops, turning around slightly. “I’m going to get dinner from the store.” He doesn’t know why he tells Jisung this, doesn’t know why he stops instead of ignoring him like he usually does. Heck, Hyunjin doesn’t even know why he doesn’t just move tables for the past two weeks.

Hyunjin thinks it’s because it’s the biggest table and he shouldn’t hand it over to Jisung easily. That must be it.

Jisung frowns. “Dinner? Don’t your parents cook for you?”

Hyunjin hums, turning around again. “It’s late. I don’t think there will be anything left for me.”

“But-”

“It’s fine,” Hyunjin waves a hand carelessly, starting to walk again. “I’m used to it. I can just get ramen or something. Bye.”

“Do you want to come over?” Jisung blurts, stopping Hyunjin in his tracks. When the taller boy turns around to face him, surprise all over his face, Jisung panics. “I-I mean, my mom makes a lot of food, you know? Says it’s because my dad works late and I’m a growing boy and all that. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind if you join us!” His voice grows a little quieter when Hyunjin doesn’t say anything. “If you w-want to of course…”

“Do you want me to?” Hyunjin asks quietly, face unreadable like he doesn’t know what emotions he should have.

“If you want to-!”

Hyunjin shakes his head. “That’s not what I’m asking, Jisung. Do _you_ want me to?”

Jisung hesitates. He doesn’t know to be honest. He doesn’t even know why he asked Hyunjin to come over. He, Han Jisung, willingly asked Hwang Hyunjin, his sworn enemy, to come to his house, his haven. Jisung thinks he’s losing his mind, but the words were out of his mouth before he knew it and strangely, he doesn’t regret them.

Two weeks wasn’t enough to change anything, right?

But as Jisung looks at Hyunjin now, who’s quietly waiting for his answer, he doesn’t know what to think anymore. During the two weeks, they actually had decent conversations. Not just insults and yelling, but well, talking. They talk like they weren’t at each other’s throats since kindergarten and that kinda scares him.

Because Hyunjin wasn’t exactly who he painted him up to be. Hyunjin in real life wasn’t the Hyunjin Jisung always imagined and hated.

Hyunjin was just…Hyunjin.

“I…um, yeah. I do. I do want you to come.” Jisung swallows dryly. “Are you going to?”

“Yeah. I’ll come.”

Jisung doesn’t know why his heart beats a little faster when a small smile spread on Hyunjin’s lips.

* * *

“I’m home!” Jisung shouts as he throws the door open, stepping inside while Hyunjin follows behind him.

His mother pops her head from the kitchen, blinking when she sees Hyunjin standing awkwardly at the doorway. “Well hello there. Are you Jisung’s friend?”

“I um-”

“He is!” Jisung interrupts. “I invited him over for dinner, that okay?”

His mother nods, smiling at Hyunjin. “Of course it is. Dinner is about ready too. I’ll go set up. Make yourself at home, sweetie.”

Hyunjin flashes her a nervous smile, shifting his bag. “Thank you. I’m sorry for dropping by so suddenly.”

Jisung’s mother shakes her head. “Oh no, I’m happy Jisung’s making new friends! He only brings over the same people for years.”

“Because I always hang out with them?” Jisung groans. “You’re gonna break Felix’s heart, Mom.”

His mother laughs. “Oh please, his mother and I are soulmates. It’s why you guys were born only a day apart.”

“Yes, yes,” Jisung rolls his eyes, but grins nonetheless. He turns to Hyunjin who was watching the interaction, strangely endeared. “Do you want to put your stuff somewhere? And like, take off your shoes and come in?”

“Oh y-yeah,” Hyunjin flushes, sliding off his shoes and placing them neatly next to Jisung’s carelessly thrown ones. He places his bag by the door and follows Jisung to the living room.

“Sit here.” Jisung says, pointing to the couch. “I’m just gonna head to my room real quick.” Hyunjin merely nods before Jisung’s climbing the stairs.

The minute he gets to his room, Jisung leans against the door. He thinks he’s going crazy. Hyunjin, _Hwang Hyunjin_ , is in his house and he’s about to eat dinner with him. He groans, letting his head hit the wooden door. What on earth is he thinking?

They’re supposed to be enemies, supposed to be sworn rivals. At least, that’s what Jisung thinks they are. So, he absolutely have no idea why things ended up this way.

Stupid Hyunjin and his witty remarks. Stupid Hyunjin and his tall ass self. Stupid Hyunjin and his cool as hell project. Stupid Hyunjin with his godly looks because who the hell can look that pretty and be alive?

Jisung thinks it’s unfair.

He hears his mother calling from downstairs and throws his bag on his bed before quickly changing into a hoodie and some shorts because he didn’t want to dirty his uniform.

When he gets to the dining room, he’s surprised to find Hyunjin talking with his mother. There’s a little twinkle in his mother’s eyes, and he instantly knows she likes him. He doesn’t know why that makes him happy, not mortified.

“So, when did you two meet?” Jisung’s mother asks casually.

The two freeze, glancing at each other. “In kindergarten…” Jisung says slowly.

His mother pauses, looking at him before it clicks in her mind. Jisung’s never kept any secrets from his mother, it’s like, impossible. His mother always knew what was up and Jisung can’t bring himself to hide anything from her. Of course, that includes Hyunjin too.

“Are you Hyunjin?” Mrs. Han asks politely.

Hyunjin swallows, nodding. “Yes. It’s um, nice to meet you, Mrs. Han.”

Jisung’s mother’s smile widens, eyes crinkling. “You’ve grown so big, Hyunjin-ah. The last time I saw you was at Parent’s Day in elementary school. You used to be the same size as Jisung, but now I can see you’re much taller.”

“Mom!” Jisung whines. He’s not short. Hyunjin is just stupidly tall. For no reason.

Hyunjin cracks a smile. “Thank you.”

“Ah, but did I meet your parents that day? I can’t remember if I had,” Mrs. Han murmurs, trying to remember.

Hyunjin’s smile falls, his eyes a little sadder than before. “You probably didn’t. They didn’t come that day.”

“Oh, I’m sorry sweetie. I didn’t mean to-”

Hyunjin shakes his head. “No, it’s really okay. They were busy that day,” he laughs bitterly. “My older brother had a recital, so they couldn’t come. It’s okay, it was just Parent’s Day.”

Jisung watches him quietly, slowly remembering their childhood. It wasn’t just Parent’s Day. He doesn’t think he’s ever seen Hyunjin’s parents come to anything. Not for the school fair, or the sports festival.

Even when Hyunjin was the lead actor in their little play in middle school, he never saw the boy’s parents come that night. His own parents came, with cameras and everything, even though Jisung only played a singing tree. Mind you, he was a great tree.

That night, Jisung vaguely remembers Hyunjin standing alone backstage in his neat little prince costume while everybody else was surrounded by their families.

It was Seungmin and his family who took him home that night.

“Do you want more?” His mother’s voice snaps him out of his thoughts, not realizing an awkward silence had fallen on the table. “I’m sure you’re still hungry!”

“Me!” Jisung hands her his plate and grabs Hyunjin’s too, ignoring the boy’s protest. “We would love more, Mom!” His mother quickly takes the plates and heads back into the kitchen.

Hyunjin sighs. “You don’t have to, you know.”

“You should eat more, the food is great.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Hyunjin stares at the table, hands clasped together. “You don’t have to pity me. I don’t want it.”

Oh. It’s the first time Jisung’s seen Hyunjin like this. He looks closed off, shoulders hunched together, and his usual confident look replaced by a downcast one. It doesn’t suit him. “I’m not pitying you.” Jisung mutters. “I just want you to eat more. You’re like, super skinny.”

Hyunjin stays silent for a moment, as if he’s trying to figure out if Jisung was lying or not. But he can’t find any insincere malice in the other boy’s words. “…what about you? Your waist is super tiny. I bet you don’t weigh a lot.”

“I do have some weight! I have abs!” Jisung pouts, flushing when Hyunjin glances at him and then at his stomach. “You think I’m lying, don’t you?”

“It’s hard to believe a squirrel has abs.”

“I’ll have you know-”

“I’m home!” A loud booming voice rings throughout the house and they hear footsteps until a man in a white lab coat enters the room with a briefcase. “Oh? Company?”

“Dad!” Jisung lights up, beaming. “What are you doing here? I thought you were staying at the lab today!”

Mr. Han laughs, setting his briefcase down. “Well, I was. But then one of my lab partners had to leave so we decided to call it a night.”

“You couldn’t keep going without them?” Hyunjin asks quietly.

Mr. Han pauses, before he smiles as he seats himself across from the boys. “We could have. But he wouldn’t be there for the discoveries and chats we’ll have, and we didn’t want him to miss out, you know? It’s better to work and share ideas as a team. After all, teamwork makes the dream work.”

Jisung grins, and Hyunjin somehow understands why Jisung keeps insisting they work as a team even when they disliked each other. Mrs. Han returns with their plates filled with food and smiles when Mr. Han entertains the boys with stories of the lab. _They’re all such science nerds_ , she thinks, amused.

* * *

“Are you sure you can go home by yourself? We can drop you off, you know.” Jisung says as he stands by the doorway, watching Hyunjin place on his shoes and grab his bag.

Hyunjin nods. “Yeah, I’m sure. Besides, my house isn’t that far from yours. I’ll manage.”

“You should, like, text or call me when you get home.” Jisung sputters. “S-so I know you weren’t mugged or kidnapped or-!”

“What are you, my mom?” Hyunjin says teasingly, chuckling when Jisung whines. “I’ll be fine, Jisung.” His eyes soften, and a smile appears on his pretty lips. “Thank you for tonight. I really appreciated it.”

Jisung could barely nod before Hyunjin’s out the door, shutting it behind him with a soft click. He doesn’t sleep that night, just lays in bed thinking of what happened in the past few hours.

It’s only until his phone lights up with a single message did he fall asleep peacefully.

* * *

They text after that. At first it was convenient things, like can you bring the tape or paint today? Or do you have extra foam? Then it became random things like have you seen this episode of this drama? Or do bunnies live on the moon?

“You’ve been on your phone a lot lately.” Seungmin notes, eyeing the device as Hyunjin lays on his bed.

Hyunjin hums. “Really? I think it’s the same.” He laughs a little when Jisung sends him another animal video.

Seungmin leans to look but Hyunjin pulls his phone away. He scowls. “Who are you texting?”

“No one.”

Seungmin narrows his eyes. “It’s Jisung, isn’t it? I thought you guys hated each other!”

Hyunjin winces. “Hate is well…a strong word choice. We kinda, I don’t know, made a truce?”

“So what are you?”

Hyunjin opens his mouth to respond, only to close it again. What are they? He doesn’t know. Were they friends? Did texting each other and meeting up daily considered friendship? The thought of being friends with Jisung is kinda foreign to him after years of being at each other’s throats. “Just…partners. For a project.”

Seungmin crosses his arms over his chest. “I thought you were working separately.”

“We are,” Hyunjin protests, pausing. “Just…in each other’s company.”

Seungmin sighs, clearly seeing he wasn’t going to get anything out of this. “Well, I’m glad you ended your silly feud. Felix and I became friends and I want it to stay that way.”

Hyunjin snorts, closing his phone after sending another message. “Please. I saw the way you look at him. That’s more than friendship right there.”

Seungmin throws a pillow at him, face a little red. “Oh shut up. What about your project? Are you almost done?”

“Yeah. I brought it home yesterday for some final touches.” Hyunjin says, swinging his legs over the bed. “I’m going to go finish it.”

Seungmin tenses. “You brought it home? What about-?”

“It’s in my room, he didn’t see.” Hyunjin gives him a reassuring smile. “Besides, he probably wouldn’t care.” He stands up and heads for the door. “I’ll see you tomorrow, yeah?”

“Yeah…”

* * *

“So, what you’re saying is, you don’t know how you feel about Hyunjin.”

“I’m so confused, Lix.”

The two almost twins were sitting on Jisung’s bed, facing each other like they were having a serious debate. Well, in this case, Jisung’s crisis was today’s topic. His mother came earlier with a plate of cookies but quickly exited when she saw their serious expressions.

“Well, do you still hate him?” Felix asks the obvious question in the room. It’s a good question though.

“No.” Jisung is quick to answer, groaning when he realizes how he answered it without hesitation. Just a month ago, he would have said ‘yes’ in a heartbeat. God, what changed so much?

Felix hugs Jisung’s plushie, tilting his head. “Well, do you like him?”

“Yes- I mean _no_ \- I don’t know what I mean oh my god-!” Jisung whines, grabbing his head and falling backwards on the bed. “Lord, help me.”

Felix snorts, reaching to poke Jisung’s leg. “I don’t see the problem here. If you don’t hate him, then you probably like him.”

“Is that what it is?” Jisung mumbles, almost like he’s talking to himself. “Is that why I can’t stop thinking how pretty he is? Is that why I find his giggles like super cute and not annoying? Is that why I think it would be nice if he smiles more? Is that why I want to kiss- _oh_.”

“Yeah, _oh_.” Felix snickers. “Looks like Jisungie has a crush~! Out of all people, you fell for your ‘sworn enemy’. Honestly, what is this k-drama?”

“Shut up,” Jisung hisses, covering his face with his hands. “Oh my god, I like him. I like Hwang Hyunjin.”

_Jisung likes Hwang Hyunjin._

Felix hums, patting Jisung’s leg. “Yes, yes. What has the world come to?”

“What am I supposed to do now? I can’t face him anymore!” Jisung groans, rolling around in agony.

“First off, you should tell him.” Felix suggests. “Who knows? Maybe he feels the same way.”

“As if,” Jisung scoffs. “I may like him, but he probably doesn’t see me other than his project partner or something. I am not telling him anything!”

Felix rolls his eyes. “Then go talk to him about the project or something. I’m sure that’s an interesting topic for you nerds.”

“Science is amazing, okay?” Jisung snaps, sitting up. “And what, you mean now?” Felix stares at him blankly. “I don’t know where he lives.”

“What luck that Seungmin does,” Felix says, texting the other boy. A minute later, Hyunjin’s address appears on his screen and he sends it to Jisung. “There. You have no excuse now.”

“I hate you, Lee Felix.”

“Don’t lie, you love me. Good luck, twinnie.”

* * *

Jisung stands in front of Hyunjin’s door. He checks his phone to make sure it’s the right house number, double checking so he wouldn’t make a fool of himself. It’s the right one, but he still thinks he’s going to make a fool of himself.

Honestly, what was he going to say? _‘Hi, I was wondering if we could talk about the project but really it’s an excuse to see you because I just found out I really like you? And like, isn’t that weird because we’ve hated each other since we were toddlers who couldn’t do anything but sleep and color?’_ Like that would do him any good.

Jisung’s about to knock when he hears a loud crash from the house, making him jump in surprise. Suddenly, there’s shouts of rage and he’s standing by the front window that was open, hearing everything clearly.

 _“You call this a science project? This is absolute filth!”_ A man’s voice bellows from the house. Jisung assumes it’s Hyunjin’s father.

His heart breaks when he hears Hyunjin’s voice, barely concealing a sob. _“You didn’t have to break it! I worked on it for three weeks!”_

_“Three weeks? Three weeks and you come up with this trash? You’re lucky I destroyed it for you! This wouldn’t have won you anything!”_

_“I’m doing my best, okay? I spent a lot of time thinking about that project!”_

_“You should have tried harder! Why can’t you be like your brother? Why can’t you be perfect like him and not this fucking disgrace?”_

_“I’m not him! I won’t ever be him! I’m getting good grades, I’m doing well in sports, I’m doing everything you want me to!”_

_“That isn’t enough if you can’t be perfect like your brother! Get out if you can’t do anything, you pathetic son! No, you’re not even a son of mine. Just get out!”_

Jisung immediately runs and hides behind a tall oak tree, just in time to see Hyunjin running out with a large duffle bag, hot tears sliding down his cheeks.

Jisung turns to see Hyunjin’s project being thrown out after him, completely broken and shattered. He sees Hyunjin’s father and immediately hates him with his entire being.

“Hyunjin!” A woman appears at the doorway, tears in her eyes. But before she could take a step outside, probably to go after Hyunjin, the man grabs her by the arm and yanks her back inside the house, the door slamming behind him.

Jisung had absolutely no idea what just happened, but he knew he had to find Hyunjin.

* * *

Jisung finds Hyunjin on a bench in the nearby park, duffle bag on the ground and he had wrapped himself in a tight ball as his shoulders shake, small sobs falling from his lips.

It breaks his heart even more because Hyunjin was so vulnerable and he’s never wanted to see him like this. “Oh, Hyunjin.”

Hyunjin freezes, sniffing. “Go away, Jisung. I’m tired.” His voice sounds broken, like he’s lost all will of anything.

Jisung doesn’t say anything, just sits next to Hyunjin on the bench. “I heard. Everything. That’s how I found you.”

Hyunjin freezes again, before curling into himself even more. “I don’t want your pity. Just, please leave. I just want to be alone…”

“I’m not leaving you,” Jisung says stubbornly. His voice softens. “I’m not pitying you either. I’m just, here. I’m right here, Hyunjin.”

And suddenly, it seems like a dam breaks within the older. Hyunjin wraps his arms around Jisung’s waist, burying his head into the smaller boy’s chest as he sobs loudly, trembling as muffled words fall from his lips in a frenzy. “W-why aren’t I enough? I’ve done my best..! I work hard, I do what makes him happy! Why…isn’t that enough? Am I not good enough? Am I just…worthless after all?”

“Do not say that.” Jisung wraps his arms around the boy, one hand running soothingly through his brown locks. “You are worth so much, Hyunjin. You work so hard, I’ve seen it. I’ve seen you with extra practice questions, I’ve seen you during practice. I’ve seen how much you work on that project. You’re more than enough, Hyunjin. It’s his fault for not seeing it.”

Hyunjin just sobs a little more, holds onto him a little tighter. Jisung murmurs soothing words as he rubs the boy’s back. They’re in a park so it should be embarrassing but Jisung finds himself not caring because all that matters was Hyunjin right now.

It’s a while before Hyunjin calms down, sobs turning into small sniffles. “Are you feeling a little better now?” Jisung asks quietly, in a warm tone.

There’s a little nod, before Hyunjin takes a deep breath and pulls himself away. Jisung can’t help but miss the warmth of the older’s body. Hyunjin wipes away his tears, blushing when he sees Jisung’s soaked shirt. “I’m sorry. I’ll get you a new one.” He mumbles, ducking his head in shame.

Jisung shakes his head. “It’s fine.” He gently takes Hyunjin’s hands into his own, caressing the skin in small circles with his thumb. “But are you really okay?”

Hyunjin bites his lips, nodding a little. He looks defeated, like he’s already accepted his fate, eyes puffy from tears. “It’s okay. I can just find an internet café to sleep at. I did take my money with me, it should be enough for a few nights. I’ll start finding a job tomorrow, so I can look for a place. School…I might have to drop out.”

He laughs, too high and too fake. There’s no light in his eyes like there always is when he laughs. “It’s going to be hard juggling a full-time job as a high schooler, you know? But it’s fine. I don’t have to go to college anyway.”

“What? No,” Jisung frowns. “You are not sleeping at an internet café. And you are most definitely not dropping out of school. You’re coming home with me.”

Hyunjin shakes his head, starting to remove his hands but Jisung grips them tighter, not letting go. Hyunjin frowns, giving up as he lets his hands go limp. “Jisung, you don’t have to do that. I know we’re not at each other’s throats anymore, but you don’t have to do this for me. I don’t want to be a bother.”

“You aren’t a bother, Hyunjin.” Jisung insists. “I told you, I’m not pitying you or anything. I’m doing this because I care, okay? We’re friends now, you can’t escape me.”

Hyunjin swallows. “Friends? Are we friends?” He mumbles, like he can’t believe it. The word is still foreign to him, especially with Jisung.

Jisung can’t believe it either. He can’t believe he friendzoned himself the day he figured out he likes Hyunjin. He’s really a fool, isn’t he? He can just imagine Felix laughing his ass off. “Yeah, friends.” He repeats with a smile that he thinks is convincing. “So, let me take care of you. Besides, we can’t let your father escape with what he did, yeah?”

“I have no idea how to do anything about it,” Hyunjin admits bitterly.

“Then we’ll think of something tomorrow,” Jisung suggests. “For now, let’s go home. I’m sure my mom made a lot of food again.” He sighs in relief when Hyunjin cracks a smile at that.

Jisung stands up first, holding out his hand to Hyunjin. The taller male blinks at the outreach hand, before looking at Jisung strangely. “Why?”

Jisung’s eyes soften as he mumbles. “You look like you need a hand.”

Hyunjin doesn’t believe him at first, so he stands. But suddenly, everything is flashing back at him and he feels a little dizzy from the emotional breakdown he’s had. He hesitates, but places his hand in Jisung’s, who immediately intertwines their fingers and squeezes gently.

Hyunjin finds himself a lot more grounded than he was a second ago, and suddenly he understands why. He can’t help but smile, heart beating a little faster when Jisung gently pulls him home.

* * *

They tell Jisung’s parents everything. They couldn’t hide it, really. Not when the two boys show up at Jisung’s house, holding hands and Hyunjin carrying a large duffle bag and looks like he cried for a long time. Which, he had.

Mrs. Han immediately goes to hug Hyunjin, and Mr. Han pats his back soothingly. They ask if there were any relatives or family friends they could call, and Hyunjin thinks before giving them Seungmin’s parents’ numbers. They tell the boys to start eating dinner while they go make the calls.

Jisung doesn’t let go of his hand as they’re eating dinner, placing them under the table. Hyunjin’s forced to eat with one hand, but he finds it in himself not to care as Jisung tries to distract him with random nonsense.

They finish before Jisung’s parents are done, heading to Jisung’s room quietly. Hyunjin’s never been to Jisung’s room before. He’s been to his house, but never his room. But as he sees the numerous science and music posters on the walls, the bookshelves with discovery books and music notebooks, he thinks it’s just like Jisung.

“You can use my bathroom,” Jisung says, holding a set of clothes in one hand. “I’ll go use my parents’. Feel free to use anything, there’s extra towels in the cupboard.”

“Okay.” Hyunjin digs into his bag for a few clothing items, flashing Jisung a grateful smile as he enters the bathroom.

Jisung doesn’t mean to look, but Hyunjin’s duffle bag was wide open. Everything is organized neatly, even the toiletries look brand new. Almost as if he was prepared… Prepared to be kicked out one day by his own father.

The thought makes Jisung’s heart ache.

* * *

They’re in Jisung’s room when his parents come. They tell them they told the Kims everything, and that they would be coming tomorrow morning to see Hyunjin. The boy thanks them gratefully, and they assure him he’s welcome to stay as long as he wants. They bid the two boys goodnight and leaves.

Hyunjin turns to Jisung. “Do you have a spare blanket? Your floor looks cold.”

Jisung gasps, shaking his head. “You are not sleeping on the floor, oh my god.”

Hyunjin blinks. “Okay, I’ll take the couch downstairs then.”

“You can sleep with me!” Jisung blushes a bright red when Hyunjin stares at him, dumbfounded by the sudden outburst. He really should keep his mouth shut, or at least learn to filter his words. “O-on the bed! It’s big enough for the both of us.”

“I-” Hyunjin furrows his eyebrows. “Are you sure? I really can sleep on the couch-!”

Jisung shakes his head again. “N-no! Here is fine! Besides, we’re friends, right? Friends can sleep together!” He can’t help but think Hyunjin is more than a friend, he’s his freaking crush. He can’t believe he just suggested to sleep together with his crush. Jisung thinks he’s an idiot.

“Um, okay then.”

It’s awkward to say the least. They’re laying on the bed, facing each other with a good amount of distance between them. God, Jisung wants to yeet himself off a cliff. He hopes his face isn’t as red as it feels. Thank god the lights are off, with only a shiver of moonlight through his windows.

“What were you doing at my house today?” Hyunjin finally speaks, breaking the awkward silence.

Jisung panics. What was he supposed to say to that? “I um, wanted to ask some questions about the project. Felix asked Seungmin for your address.”

There’s a pause before, “I’m glad you came today. I lied. I didn’t want to be alone,” Hyunjin admits, voice soft and hush.

“I know. That’s why I stayed.”

Silence falls on them again, but it isn’t awkward this time, just…comfortable. Jisung feels comfortable with Hyunjin. He didn’t realize it before, but he’s started feeling more comfortable with him since they started working together in the library.

“It’s not always that bad,” Hyunjin says, a little forlorn. “He’s been angry before but not to this extent.”

“You don’t have to talk about it, Hyunjin.”

“I want to,” Hyunjin presses. “I want you to know. Will you listen?”

“Yeah. Always.”

Hyunjin takes a deep breath, “All my life he’s always been pressuring me to be perfect. He said he already made my older brother perfect, so of course his next goal was me. But he was never satisfied with anything I did. I tried being the best at everything: grades, athletics, social. It’s probably why I disliked you,” he chuckles, “because you were the one person I always had to compete against. You were like, that obstacle that never stops bouncing back.”

“What can I say? I’m the best rival you can get.” Jisung says cheekily.

Hyunjin laughs a little. “That’s true. It’s been years. As for my mom, well, she’s nice. Just,” he sighs, “she can’t go against my dad. Whenever I’m home late from school, he doesn’t allow me to eat dinner. But she sneaks food for me late at night. I got scared he would find out, so I started eating out whenever I was late. She wanted to come to all my school events, you know? But he didn’t allow her to.”

Jisung remembers how the woman had ran to the doorway, looking as if she wants to rush after Hyunjin but was stopped by her husband. He feels bad for her. In his household, his parents share an equal amount of power in their relationship. “Your mom must care about you a lot.”

Hyunjin hums. “Yeah, she does. She got hurt once because of me. He was especially angry that day, drunk too. She shielded me when he tried to hit me with a beer bottle, and now she has a scar on her cheek because of it. I always feel guilty whenever I see it.”

“How is he not in jail?” Jisung sees red. How dare that man make Hyunjin suffer for so many years?

“Because neither of us could stop him,” Hyunjin murmurs. “And my brother left us for America. So yeah, that’s kinda my shitty life story. Thank you for listening.”

“What are you going to do about, you know…”

Hyunjin pauses. “The project? Well, mine is destroyed now. I don’t have time to make a new one.” Hyunjin reaches to grab Jisung’s hand, squeezing gently. “You should turn yours in. It’s almost done, right? Don’t worry about putting my name down, I’ll tell the principal I’m dropping out. When you go to nationals, you can find another partner to work with you this time.”

“What about you?” Jisung says worryingly. “I thought you wanted to go too.”

Hyunjin chuckles bittersweetly. “I only wanted to go because of my dad. Now that he goes and ruins the project I created for him, it’s out of my hands now. But, I know you wanted to go. You should, you deserve it, Jisung.”

Jisung bites his lips, because he doesn’t know what to say. He doesn’t like that Hyunjin’s giving up like this, but something tells him Hyunjin’s dropping out because he wants to, not because he has to. He supposes he should let the boy do what he wants, especially after what he’s been through. “Okay, I’ll think about it. Let’s sleep, yeah?”

“Goodnight, Jisung.” Hyunjin whispers, before he turns on his side to face the other way.

Jisung’s disappointed to say the least, but he thinks it’s for the best. “Goodnight, Hyunjin.” He whispers back, turning to face the other way too.

Jisung tries to sleep, really he does. But his heart keeps beating fast, and he’s kinda scared Hyunjin will hear. So, he does some breathing exercises to calm himself down. Nobody ever said sleeping with your crush next to you was easy.

The clock keeps ticking away and it’s close to midnight, so he should have been asleep like two hours ago. But he hears a shuffle behind him and he freezes, breath caught when long, slender arms wrap themselves around his middle and he’s pulled back gently against a firm chest. There’s a warm breath on his neck, hair tickling the skin.

“Thank you.” Soft lips murmur against his neck, before they slow to even breaths.

Jisung’s heart beats impossibly faster.

* * *

The next morning, Jisung wakes up first. He feels warm, like really warm. His heart almost jumps out when he sees that sometime during the night, he had rolled over to face Hyunjin.

His hands are against the other boy’s chest, and he tilts his head up to see Hyunjin’s sleeping face. His eyes are closed peacefully, long lashes and that cute mole under his eye. His perfect lips are slightly ajar, small breaths coming out in an even rhythm. Jisung wonders if his lips are as soft as they look, they seem kissable too.

He’s pretty, Jisung thinks. Then again, Hyunjin is always pretty. Jisung can admit that now. He can fully admit he thought about kissing Hyunjin on numerous occasions too, it’s hard not to when the boy has the most perfect lips for kissing.

Hyunjin scrunches his nose and Jisung quickly closes his eyes, trying to keep his breathing calm. “Wha- Oh god,” Hyunjin breathes, a little shaky but he keeps his arms around Jisung.

And just because he’s a little vixen, Jisung snuggles closer to Hyunjin, all while pretending to be asleep. Hyunjin makes an unattractive noise but doesn’t move away. Instead, his hand comes up to brush stray hairs from Jisung’s face in an impossibly gentle manner, hand caressing his cheek.

Jisung hopes he doesn’t hear his raging heartbeat.

It all becomes a little too much when Hyunjin continues touching Jisung’s face gently, and the smaller boy opens his eyes. “Good morning, Hyunjin.”

The taller male freezes, glancing down at Jisung slowly, who looks back at him with an amused and shy smile. It clicks in his mind that Jisung’s been awake this whole time, and he quickly pulls back so fast he topples off the bed.

Jisung immediately leans over the bedside, worried. “Are you okay?”

“F-fine. Just fine,” Hyunjin sputters, rubbing his bottom. His cheeks are a flaming red and the tips of his ears look like they’re on fire. He didn’t expect to be caught.

Jisung can’t help but chuckle. It’s not the morning he would expect, but it’s them and it’s great. He’s about to help him when they hear the door downstairs and voices in the house.

They walk downstairs together. The minute they get down, Seungmin and his mother are rushing to hug Hyunjin, both crying a little. He reassures them that he was alright. They all sit in the living room as Seungmin’s mother reveals she’s been working with Hyunjin’s mother for solid evidence against his father.

She tells him they set up cameras and recording devices in the house for several years now and have more than enough evidence with the sudden situation. She says they were going to the police today with a live footage from the cameras because apparently, his father had forbidden his mother from leaving the house to find him.

“But we need you there as a testimony.” Mrs. Kim says. “Your mother is already willing to be one, and your brother is coming back too.”

“My brother?” Hyunjin is baffled. “Why? He’s the one who left us.”

Mrs. Kim smiles sadly. “It’s because he wanted to run away from your father. Since he was the first child, your father was especially determined in making sure he was ‘perfect’. Your brother couldn’t take it anymore and ran away to America, where he’s been having therapy for a few years now.”

“I never knew that,” Hyunjin says in disbelief. He always thought his brother never suffered, never been told he was worth nothing. It turns out, his brother was so mentally damaged he had to undergo therapy before he could live normally again.

“Will you come with us?” Mr. Kim asks. “I know it’s all so soon, but the quicker we do this, the quicker the trial will be.”

“I,” Hyunjin glances at Jisung, who offers him an encouraging smile. “Yes. I’ll do it.” He turns to the Kims with a determined gaze. “Let’s do it.”

* * *

It isn’t until a week later did everything settle down. His father is in jail for multiple charges, no hope of being freed any time in the future. Hyunjin and his family are doing better. His mother filed the divorce papers and she’s getting therapy sessions after being in an abusive relationship. His brother apologized for leaving, but Hyunjin’s just happy he’s doing better and having a good life in America.

Hyunjin does some therapy too, but it’s not as serious. He just needs a place to talk about his problems and feelings for a while, let out everything that’s build up until now. His therapist says he should talk to his friends more often, and Hyunjin thinks he knows the right person for the job.

It’s the day of the presentations and Hyunjin’s nervous. He arrived a little late to school, after not being present for the past week due to the trial. He hopes he hasn’t missed it, he didn’t get to see Jisung’s project in its completion yet.

Speaking of Jisung, the boy has been texting him everyday during that week. Always trying to cheer him up or distract him from everything stressful. Hyunjin’s grateful he’s there. He wants Jisung to be a constant in his life.

A month ago, he would have never said that, never would have imagined it. But now, it’s all he can think about. Jisung’s all he can think about. Jisung, Jisung, _Jisung_.

And the thought makes him run a little quicker into the school. He sees Seungmin in the hallways first. “Min, where’s the presentations at?”

Seungmin pauses, “There isn’t any.”

Hyunjin stops. “What? But I thought-”

“Jisung dropped out.”

Hyunjin freezes, staring at Seungmin in shock. But there isn’t any emotion in his best friend’s eyes, just complete seriousness because he’s telling the truth. Hyunjin takes a step back in disbelief. “B-but why?”

Seungmin shrugs. “I don’t know. You can ask him yourself.” Seungmin smiles warmly. “He’s in the courtyard, Jin.”

“I- Thank you, Seungmin.”

“Any time. Be happy, Hyunjin.”

* * *

Jisung’s sitting in the courtyard by himself, humming a little as he writes in his song notebook. He’s been having a lot of inspirations lately. Chan and Changbin were surprised when he came to them with pages and pages of lyrics, but they accept it proudly.

“Jisung.”

Jisung’s pencil stops, and he looks up from his notebook to see Hyunjin standing in front of him. He’s never closed the notebook faster in his life, making the other boy blink in confusion. “H-hyunjin! What are you doing here?”

“My mom said I could come back to school,” Hyunjin explains. “She’s getting the paperwork sorted out for school since you know, I don’t have two guardians anymore.”

“R-right,” Jisung nods, holding onto his notebook tightly. Where was his bag when he needs it? Oh, that’s right. Back in the classroom.

“Why did you drop out?” Jisung’s breath catches and he stills. Hyunjin looks frustrated, running a hand through his hair. “Why did you drop out, Jisung? You obviously wanted to go. Is it because of me? I told you it was okay-”

Jisung shakes his head, “It wasn’t okay for me. Yeah, I worked my ass off for that project. And yeah, I did want to go. But Hyunjin, we’re supposed to be a team. If you couldn’t go, then why should I? There’s no point in me submitting an individual project for a team project, it’s not right. So yeah, I dropped out.”

“But-!”

“Nope, no buts. There’s always gonna be another one anyway,” Jisung shrugs, grinning a little. “Who knows, maybe next time I’ll make something that doesn’t look like a watermelon to you.”

“It’s an amazing watermelon,” Hyunjin is quick to say. He sighs. “Are you really sure it’s okay?”

Jisung stands up, giving Hyunjin two thumbs-up. “Of course, it is! Trust me on this!”

But Hyunjin isn’t looking at him, instead his eyes are on the notebook that fell off Jisung’s lap when he stood and onto the floor, open to a page of lyrics. Jisung’s face turns red and he reaches for the book but Hyunjin is quicker.

Try as he might, Jisung is too short to reach for the book as Hyunjin holds it out of his reach, admitting defeat when he backs down and Hyunjin reads a little more. He’s nervous. The only people who have seen his lyrics are his friends and he honestly doesn’t know what Hyunjin thinks.

But the other boy is silent, just reading the words quietly to himself. “It’s beautiful,” Hyunjin murmurs in awe. “They’re amazing, Jisung. I can’t believe you wrote all this.”

“They’re about you!” Jisung gasps, placing his hands over his mouth when the words come out. Why, oh why, can’t he ever shut up? The one time he should have kept his mouth shut, he goes and ruins it.

Hyunjin stills, fingers on a page as he rereads the words again. Slowly, he’s flipping through pages and pages of lyrics, skimming through the words with a quickening heartbeat. He gets to the end where it’s a page of unfinished lyrics, but the words stand out to him.

_“It’s not the same without him, it won’t ever be the same.”_

_“When you come back, I’ll always be here for you.”_

_“It’s always been you.”_

With trembling hands, Hyunjin looks up to see a blushing Jisung. He swallows dryly. “I-is this what I think it is?”

“A confession? Yeah, it kinda is.” Jisung admits, playing with his hands. He’s so nervous he feels like he’s gonna faint. “I like you. A lot. As in, I might or might not be in love with you, Hwang Hyunjin. And it’s all your fault I’ve been thinking about you nonstop and suddenly all my lyrics are about you and your stupidly unfair good looks. You and your witty comebacks for no apparent reason. You and your tendency to giggle at everything, though it’s cute. You and your kissable lips. You and your everything! The hyungs wouldn’t stop teasing me so yeah, I kinda hate you for that.”

Jisung laughs nervously, but he’s rambling again. “I turned down science for you, I’m writing lyrics about you. You literally barged your way into my two passions in life. God, what did you do to me, Hwang Hyunjin? This isn’t fair-!”

There’s a pair of plush, plump lips on his before he could make another sound, a squeak of surprise escaping his lips that was quickly devoured. It isn’t fireworks like everybody tells him, Jisung thinks. Instead, it’s butterflies fluttering in his stomach, his heart is beating so fast he’s scared he’s going to have an attack.

Jisung stands on his toes a little as he wraps his arms around Hyunjin’s neck, because the boy was taller and for once Jisung doesn’t care. Not when Hyunjin is pulling him impossibly closer and kissing him harder, nibbling on his lips before seamlessly breaking through. Jisung whines a little, body hotter than it was before and he feels his breath shortening embarrassingly fast.

When they break apart, it’s only a moment before Hyunjin’s peppering kisses all over Jisung’s face, meeting his lips again for another heated kiss. They’re out of breath the next time, leaning their foreheads against each other.

“Wow. Um, okay. Did not expect that. It just happened. That was nice. Like, really nice? Cool, cool.” Words fumble from Jisung’s lips in a frenzy. “Is this like, a thing? Can we make it a thing? Because it’s really nice. 12/10 would recommend. Would do it again too.”

“Oh my god, you don’t shut up, do you?” Hyunjin groans, but there’s a smile on his swollen lips. “I’m saying I like you too.”

“To be fair, you didn’t _say_ it. You showed it mhmf-!”

Hyunjin cuts Jisung off again by pressing a long, lingering kiss to his thinner lips. It’s chapped, probably because he was chewing on them again. But Hyunjin doesn’t care, just kisses him harder so Jisung will make those enriching moans of his. He does.

“Han Jisung, be my boyfriend?” Hyunjin murmurs against Jisung’s lips, delighted at how dazed the smaller boy looks, completely blissed out.

“So, like, does that mean more kisses? And hand holding? And cuddling-?”

“Yes, yes and yes.” Hyunjin sighs. “You know, I should start figuring out ways to shut you up once in a while.”

Jisung grins cheekily. “You should kiss me again,” he suggests, wiggling his eyebrows, “then I couldn’t talk at all.”

“Is that a yes then?” Hyunjin presses.

Jisung smiles, pecking Hyunjin’s full lips. He’s right. They’re as soft as he thinks they are. Very kissable. And just for that, he kisses Hyunjin once, twice, maybe another time. “Yes. I’ll be your boyfriend, Hwang Hyunjin.”

“That’s good,” Hyunjin says softly, rubbing his nose against Jisung’s gently. “So, this might be a good time to tell you why I stole your animal crackers in kindergarten. Just so we can start off with a clean slate.”

Jisung arches an eyebrow, blinking in confusion. Hyunjin grins. “You were stuffing so much into your mouth that your cheeks grew, and I was afraid you were going to burst.”

“Well, the reason I stole your crayons was because we were supposed to be making self-portraits and your drawing wasn’t as pretty as you were.” Jisung confesses, smiling when Hyunjin laughs.

“Oh my god, we’re such fools.”

“Fools in love? Yeah, sounds about right.”

**Author's Note:**

> First Hyunsung story on Ao3! I adore this couple so much omg. I've had this idea for a while but didn't think about writing it until recently. Honestly, it's made me stay up late for several nights in a row (lowkey highkey dying and living on coffee right now). It was really supposed to be a short and sweet one-shot... but things went along and it got out of hand ahahaha. 
> 
> Well, it's done now and I hope you all enjoy it! :))
> 
> For more Hyunsung (or Stray Kids) content, feel free to check out my twitter: @starbunny_00


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